Wrong on Political, Economic Grounds

The Economic Times     9th November 2020     Save    

Context: The Haryana government has decided to reserve 75% of private-sector jobs(paying less than Rs. 50,000 a month) for residents of the state.

Arguments against such reservation:

  • Can kill off industrial and economic growth: in manufacturing and service sector hubs.
    • Gurugram’s thriving IT and IT-enabled services industries are likely to migrate to Greater Noida or even Pune if the law is enforced.
  • Tedious compliance requirements: Companies must settle for lesser than the best in accordance with hiring a local candidate, spending time and money verifying the local claim.
  • Prone to corruption: It gives civil servants extraordinary discretionary powers to exempt a company’s hiring from the ‘vocal for local’ quota mandate.
  • Violates the spirit of the Constitution of India: that seeks to build a unified nation out of the land’s extreme diversity, also setting a bad precedent. It disregards certain rights like. - 
  • Article 14 - a guarantee of equality
  • Article 15 - a guarantee against non-discrimination based on place of birth
  • Article 19 - a guarantee of the right to work anywhere in the country.

Way Forward:

  • The Haryana government must withdraw the Bill.
  • If the state doesn’t withdraw, then the Centre must advise the President to withhold his consent.